The Michigan Wolverines will host the Central Michigan Chippewas as part of the Week 3 college football slate. Michigan will be looking to bounce back after falling to Oklahoma last week. They dropped eight slots in the AP Poll and are now ranked 23rd coming into the week.
This is the fifth matchup between these two programs in history, with Michigan coming out victorious in each of the previous games. The Wolverines have won these matchups by an average margin of 43 points. They last faced off in 2013, which resulted in a 59–9 victory.
Looking at the odds for this matchup, Michigan enters as 27.5-point favorites and holds -4000 odds on the moneyline on DraftKings Sportsbook. Central Michigan holds +1600 odds of getting the outright victory, with the game total set at 42.5.
This article will take a brief preview of both teams and a pick for the Week 3 matchup.
Central Michigan vs. Michigan prediction, preview
Central Michigan Preview
The Chippewas enter with a 1–1 record so far this year. They took down San Jose State 16–14 in the opener but fell 45–17 to Pitt last week. While their offense is run-oriented by design, they have struggled to get any sort of passing production to this point. Central Michigan has just 292 yards through the air and one passing touchdown through the opening two games. No wide receiver has more than four receptions on the season. Trey Cornist and Nahree Biggings have each rushed for over 100 yards, with Angel Flores playing a role in the rushing attack as well.
On the defensive side of the ball, Central Michigan has not been overly impressive either. They gave up 383 total yards of offense to San Jose State in Week 1 and 464 to Pitt last week. The Chippewas have produced three interceptions and a fumble recovery but have just two sacks and six tackles for loss to this point. Linebacker Jordan Kwiatkowski leads the team with 14 tackles and one of the team’s interceptions.
Michigan Preview
The Wolverines took down New Mexico 34–17 in their season opener, in which Justice Haynes broke the game open with 164 rushing yards and three touchdowns. They then fell to Oklahoma 24–13, in which John Mateer outclassed Bryce Underwood at the quarterback position. Oklahoma climbed five spots to move to 13th in the AP Poll, while Michigan dropped to 23rd. The Sooners are a good team, and this is a respectable loss, but the matchup exposed some weaknesses in Michigan. Bryce Underwood completed just nine of his 24 pass attempts for 142 yards. The true freshman has plenty of talent but is going to need some seasoning to be fully ready for this team to reach the heights they desire. The 18-year-old had his “welcome to college football” moment last week, and how he responds will be more telling.
The Wolverines will continue to lean on their defense as their blueprint for success, but they haven’t exactly brought the expected bite to this point. New Mexico was limited to 267 yards against Michigan, but Oklahoma put up over 400 yards of offense and was methodical in its attack. Michigan has notched four sacks, 21 tackles for loss, four interceptions, and a fumble recovery to this point. Ernest Hausmann leads the team with 19 tackles thus far.
Central Michigan vs. Michigan pick, best bet
It is going to be very interesting to see how Bryce Underwood responds to his struggles, and this is the type of matchup that should be used to build up his confidence. But I am punting on a side for this matchup and taking the under. Both of these teams are completely content leaning on the run game and bleeding out the clock in a low-scoring matchup. Each side has also shown some notable concerns with their quarterback play and offense as a whole.
My lean would be toward Central Michigan to cover the significant spread, with it being difficult to see Michigan blowing out teams at this stage of the game. The track record is strong for Michigan in these matchups, but the Wolverines have not had the look of a team capable of steamrolling another to this point. It is also worth noting that Biff Poggi will be running the Michigan sidelines for this matchup as Sherrone Moore serves his two-game suspension. Poggi has a fascinating story, in which he became a hedge fund millionaire but has a passion for football and has spent time as the head coach of Charlotte as well as on Michigan’s sideline since the Harbaugh era.
This should not be a major factor in this game, with there sure to be plenty of planning in place, but it is worth noting nonetheless. The coaching change at least adds another factor in Michigan not looking like the best version of themselves. Count on both these offenses to struggle and for this to be the lowest-scoring affair that has occurred in the matchups between these two programs. Expect Michigan to keep Central Michigan at arm’s length, but for points to be difficult on both sides of the ball.
